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DeLAND--Campbell quarterback Brian Hudson’s 11-yard touchdown rush with 1:07 to go lifted the Camels to a 19-18 victory over host Stetson in Pioneer Football League play, Saturday at Spec Martin Memorial Stadium.

The Hatters (1-7 overall, 0-5 PFL) had scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns, including a 61-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Tentler to Rob Coggin with 5:12 to play, to build an 18-7 lead.

But Campbell’s Jonathan Rogers returned the ensuing kickoff 97 yards to cut the lead to five (18-13), and Hudson’s rush capped the visitor’s comeback in the closing minutes.

“It’s part of the growing process to learn how to win,” said Stetson head coach Roger Hughes. “I’m not trying to offend anyone here, but you’ve got to put your foot on their throat and make sure they don’t get back up. And we didn’t do that. We let them back in the game and gave them opportunities to score.”

The Hatters and Camels (2-7, 1-5) both started slow offensively, with neither team finding the end zone until the second half. Stetson led 5-0 at halftime thanks to a safety by Adam Vinson and a 40-yard field goal from James LaGamma, but the Hatters could have led by even more.

After Stetson stopped Campbell on fourth-and-six from the Stetson 44, the Hatters drove down to the one-yard line where they failed to convert on third-and-goal.

On fourth down from the one, Tentler rolled to his right and missed an open receiver in the back of the end zone, giving the ball to the Camels. On the next play, Vinson tackled Campbell’s Dalton Dillon in the end zone for a safety.

“It would have helped if I would have run in on that play,” said Tentler. “I looked back and I saw (Jonathan) Strahl and was trying to be unselfish and throw it, and I should have just run it. That's my fault.”

Stetson came up empty on first two possessions of the second quarter, but put points on the board in the final minute. The Hatters drove 46 yards in 54 seconds as LaGamma converted on his only field goal attempt of the game as time expired.

The Hatters started the second half with the ball and after stalling on the initial drive, Campbell finally put points on the board. Dillon capped a 6-play, 58-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown run with 9:45 left in the third quarter to give the Camels a 7-5 lead.

Campbell maintained its two-point lead into the fourth quarter and appeared on the verge of adding to their lead before stumbling. On first-and-10 from the Hatter 27, Donald Payne recovered a Hudson fumbled and gave the Hatters the ball at the 28. Eleven plays later Tentler scored on a 33-yard draw play to give Stetson back the lead. The two-point conversion failed and Stetson led 11-7 with 9:58 remaining.

The Camels once again drove the ball deep into Stetson territory and the Hatters once again came up with a big defensive play. After moving down to the Stetson 17 yard line, the Camels three times came up short and on fourth-and-two Dillon was dropped for a one-yard loss, giving the ball to Stetson on downs.

Stetson finally connected for a big play and appeared to take control of the game when Tentler found Coggin on the long scoring pass. But the 18-7 lead didn’t last.

Stetson finished the game with 373 yards of total offense, its second-best offensive effort of the year, including 285 yards passing. Tentler completed 16-of-26 pass attempts for 220 yards and one touchdown. He also led the rushing attack with 33 yards on 12 carries. Coggin caught six passes for a season-high 113 yards.

Despite the tough loss, the Hatters walked away from the game with some measure of improvement.

“Every loss is a loss,” said Payne. “It hurts the same. Coach Hughes did tell us that we did get better today. So that's one positive to take from this game. But we don't ever want to get used to the feeling of losing.”

Campbell was limited to 320 yards of total offense, despite entering the game averaging over 450 yards per game. Hudson was also 16-of-26 passing, for 11 yards, and carried the ball 15 times for 92 yards.

Payne led the defensive effort with a game-high 15 tackles, including one tackle for loss and a fumble recovery. Davion Belk added 11 tackles.

The Hatters close out the home portion of their schedule when they host Davidson for Homecoming, 3 p.m., Saturday, November 9.